Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds
by Vorahk295
Summary: Rebooted and revamped fom the original. Set in a slightly alternate version of the Sonic universe, the machinations of a mysterious figure forge an unlikely alliance between the Freedom Fighters and the Suppression Squad. With no one side knowing the full extent of their adversary's plan, the only advice they get is to keep Fiona Fox alive, but can it really be that simple?
1. Chapter 1: Time

Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds (Chapter 1: Time)

Midday in the bizarre, interdimensional prison realm known simply as the No-Zone, and one of its more recent inmates flopped down on his bunk. He was a hedgehog, green in colouration, his eyes icy-blue.

Scourge had been in the prison for almost a month now, and it had been, so far, an utterly humiliating experience. Despite being the alternate, opposite, dark mirror of Sonic himself, he had never possessed his counterpart's resourcefulness. Fighting had almost exclusively been done through punches, kicks, ramming attacks, and the ever-helpful spin attack. And now none of those were useful: The heavy inhibitor collar around his neck shut down all of his powers, and having never learned to fight without them, the other prisoners had taken advantage of his slighter build and newfound weakness to use him as their personal punching bag.

He looked across the cell at something that his roommate had dubbed "The Wall of Crazy"- covered in crudely-sketched images of those he held responsible: Sonic, who had beaten him, the Zone Police, who had arrested him, and above all, Miles Prower, the Tails of his world, and Fiona Fox, his then-girlfriend, who had abandoned him to his fate when things got rough. Each of the images had a pin stuck into the right side of its chest.

He looked away from the wall, and grabbed a dumbbell, hefting it into his grip and beginning a routine of bicep curls. If he couldn't regain his original strength and defend himself normally, he would have to work for it. He had bulked up considerably since then, and started winning a few of the fights, while his quills, while cut shorter, were messier and shaggier, while his signature sick smirk had been replaced with a near-permanent scowl.

"Gotta get out of here..." He said quietly. "Get home. Make 'em all pay. Take what's mine. S'All that matters."

As he worked, a chill whipped through the cell, and he looked up to see a dark figure standing at the door. He couldn't make out any features, save for a pair of piercing, gleaming jade eyes. The figure appeared to be wearing a long coat of some sort, and had his arms folded behind his back. The area around him seemed grey- the light itself faded around him, and the air hung still, nothing moving. The fan above his head had stopped, no wind-down, with the switch still in the 'on' position, and the power was still on, since the light still glowed dimly above his head. In fact, everything except for the Moebian and his mysterious guest had simply ceased to move.

"Can I help you with anything?" Scourge grunted, dropping the weight to the floor.  
>"No, not yet..." The figure spoke. His voice was low, smooth, and fluid, a faint hissing in it. Something about it just seemed wrong. "But I can help you..."<br>"Yeah, right." He snorted. "How are you gonna do that?"

He couldn't see the newcomer's face, but he got the sense that the shadowy man was smiling broadly. He walked forward again, and as he approached the force-field that kept him in, he simply stepped straight through it. Scourge stared, backing up slightly.

"What are you?" He asked. Again, he got the sense that the man was smiling. His black aura parted, exposing his body. He was slightly taller than an adult Mobian, but had a similar build. He resembled a hedgehog, with a mane of eight quills growing from the back of his head. His shoulders were quite broad, but his frame was otherwise thin and lean. He was covered almost entirely in black fur, the leading edges of his quills flecked with white, the central one reaching down to his forehead and forming an arrowhead shape, while his hairless muzzle was pale and cold, unbroken by a mouth. He wore grey trousers and a black undershirt, with a white longcoat over the top of that. His extremities were covered by black combat boots and gauntlets, while a strange medallion hung around his neck. It was gold, circular, and contained four stones. Three of them were smaller, positioned in a triangular shape around the outside, forged from obsidian, while in the centre, there rested a much larger one, which flickered in the gloom, as if it were refined from fire itself. His eyes, now clearly visible, had slit-shaped pupils, and Scourge felt unnerved to even look at them.

"I am Mephiles the Eternal, God of Time, Bringer of Light, Lord of Shadow." He replied. "I can already sense that you do not believe me, but for now, that is irrelevant. All you need to believe is that I can help you take your vengeance on these three."

He snapped his fingers, shadowy images of Sonic, Fiona, and Miles appearing around them. Realising that this "Mephiles" was probably some level of telepath, and was reading his thoughts, he smirked. Whether his claims of divinity were true or not, the new hedgehog was incredibly powerful. This was a golden opportunity, provided it was genuine.

"And how are you going to do that?" He asked.  
>"Your counterpart is going to die. Later, rather than sooner, but he will. A few things have to happen first, but rest assured, his death is certain. As for the vixen, her end will come much sooner. Your... usurper, on the other hand, is more complex than them, so we're going to let him play a hand it what happens. He is going to get to assist in the Freedom Fighters' attempt to thwart our attempt on Fiona's life, before we snatch that away from him. I believe you are familiar with that little routine?"<br>"Yeah, my old favourite. Got a question, though: Why are you doing this?"  
>"You will see in time. For now... we should take our leave."<br>"That might be problematic. I've got no powers, and they've got a lot of guns. If you're what you say you are, you'll be fine. Me? I'm a sitting target."  
>"Yes... your weakness has been frustrating you, hasn't it? Allow me to remedy that."<p>

Mephiles touched a single finger to the collar around Scourge's neck, and immediately, the metal warped. It bent and buckled, rust overtaking it, as the rapidly ageing device quickly crumbling to dust. Immediately, Scourge felt his strength return, albeit with a wave of nausea- something that happened all too often for his tastes. Shrugging it off, he picked up the weight, and threw it into the "wall of crazy" with ease. His infamous sick grin overtook his face, and he turned to face his mysterious benefactor again.

"Shall we?"  
>"Quite." Mephiles nodded. He snapped his fingers, and the air behind him split, widening into a roiling spiral, before walking through it. Scourge followed, and stepped into thin air.<p>

"SHIT." He yelled, realising how far above the ground he was. His eyes shut tightly, he began to curse the apparent treachery, only to notice that the air was not rushing past him. He was hovering in place. Gingerly, he opened one eye, and realised that he hadn't moved an inch since he left the portal, which had now closed behind him. "You tryin' to give me a heart attack?!"

Mephiles lowered down beside him, supported by a massive pair of chiropteran wings-each was easily as long as he was tall, at least. He didn't look up, fixing his eyes on the ground below them.

"If I wanted to do that, I would have." He replied.  
>"Gah... Okay, where are we?"<br>"Mobius Prime, where one of our targets is. Fiona Fox has assembled the Destructix, under Finitevus' command. She thinks she can save you from the No-Zone- not a first choice, of course. She wasted time hunting down Lightning Lynx first, and needed the aid of Sonic do so."  
>"Dumb bitch, the Destructix were no help in the first place. S'why I ditched them when I went to Moebius. They were dead weight, they only slowed me down."<br>"Of course."  
>"So, we're just gonna run in there and kill them, right?"<br>"No, not yet." Mephiles replied.  
>"Why?"<br>"There is a saying that I am fond of: In order to enjoy the game, you must first set up the board. In order for my plan to work, we need to present the idea of a Suppression Squad and Destructix alliance."

"Why would I ever align with the Freak?"  
>"Because that is how we will ensure his downfall. I will go to him, and tell him what I have told you. However, I will frame it as a scheme to set you up for a fall. Once that is done, he will throw in with me. He will "protect" Fiona. That way, you can vent your frustrations with her however you please."<br>"I can do that now."  
>"If you do, she will run away." He said. "If Miles and his allies are there for her, though, she will have someone to go crawling to when you use and abuse her."<br>"You've thought this all out, haven't you?"  
>"Indeed I have..."<br>"Okay, but if we're going to go in there and recruit them, I need some new duds."  
>"Of course, one must look respectable to demand respect. Fortunately, with my powers, time is of little issue."<p>

***

In the lair of the mad Doctor Finitevus, the ragtag team known as the Destructix had lined up before the black-robed echidna. Unlike many other enemies of the Freedom Fighters, the team were a mercenary group who had been pieced together from one small team, and a few of the other rogues. Currently, they were headed up by Fiona Fox, a turncoat Freedom Fighter. Muscle was provided by Sergeant Simon Simian, a massively bulky gorilla, clad in army fatigues, while air support was handled by Predator Hawk, a thrill-seeking bird wearing light armour. Coercion was generally handled by Flying Frog, an amphibian who dressed like a pilot and had more mental problems than brain cells, but packed the ability to intimidate just about anyone with his antics. The final member of the team was Lightning Lynx, a quiet and reserved fighter, trained in the arts of the ninja, and clad in pale blue plain clothes, as befitting his profession.

"Well..." The echidna spoke, standing up and approaching them. "As far as your own abilities go, you are ready. But in terms of working as a team, you are sorely lacking."  
>"What do you want us to do, Doc? Trust falls?" Fiona asked, earning a snigger from a few of her allies.<br>"Of course not." Finitevus rolled his eyes, grinning back. "I want to get the core of the problem, and pluck it out. After all, I am a doctor, and I have some experience with the mind. So let's discuss the issue, shall we?"  
>"Okay, I guess." She shrugged.<br>"Let's start with... Predator."

"Alright then... I'm here for two reasons: First off, loyalty to my allies. Myself, Simian, Lightning, and Frog were the original core, after all. Second: Raiding the No-Zone actually sounds like an appropriate challenge."  
>"And the problems we're having?"<br>"Not gonna lie, it's the leadership."

"Excuse me?" Fiona glared at him.  
>"Most of the people I work for have a reason to be doing what they're doing. You? I can't tell what you actually want. Oh, rescue your boyfriend? Oh, so he can go back to treating you like dirt and then ditching us the moment he sees something easier?"<br>"Hey, listen yo-"  
>"Wait your turn, Fiona." Finitevus smirked. "This is about letting your friends air their grievances. You can respond to them later. Now, how about-"<p>

The echidna was interrupted when the door burst open, swinging loosely in an abnormally strong wind. A second later, Scourge stalked through the door. His chest was still exposed, but he now wore an open black coat with grey shoulder-pads, grey combat trousers, and black trainers.

"Hey all..." He grinned.  
>"Scourge!" Fiona gasped, leaving her team-mates and approaching him. His smile faded immediately, and he held up his hand, halting her.<br>"Getting ahead of yourself, a little." He scowled. She paused, staring at him. "If you want this again, then we're going to have to get past a little issue."  
>"And that is...?"<br>"You ditched me, you thick-headed bitch!" He roared. Fiona shrank back slightly, as he started stalking towards her. "After all I did for you, you ran off the moment it got tough."  
>"They would've overwhelmed us eventually, I went off to get help..."<br>"Point A, you could've told me! Point B, your plan was the Destructix?! The guys who were consistently working for the one person we betrayed to go after Moebius? The guys who are consistently not on a level with the Freedom Fighters? And you expected them to stop two whole teams of pissed-off Freedom Fighters?!"  
>"I... I..."<p>

"Oh, leave the poor girl alone, Scourge. We are here to take her with us, remember." Mephiles' voice rumbled from the corridor.  
>"W-who's that?"<br>"Oh, that's the new boss. The guy who sprung me from the No-Zone." The hedgehog grinned, as the dark hedgehog appeared from the doorway. His wings now folded against his back, the claws at their midpoint reaching up past his head. He surveyed the others in the room, eyes lingering on Fiona for a moment longer than the others.

"Allow me to introduce myself..." He said, bowing slightly. "My name is Mephiles, and I have a proposal that you might want to hear... But first... Doctor..."

He turned to Finitevus, and approached him slowly, towering over the slighter being. The albino watched apprehensively, as he drew level. Fiona tilted her head, surprised. In all the time she had worked for Finitevus, she had never seen him like this. He had faced down an enraged Knuckles, and his smile never faltered. Since then, she had come to see him as truly fearless. And yet, this random freak of nature with a silly name was making him visibly afraid. The whole thing seemed wrong.

"You know who I am."  
>"I... recognise the name. I expected attire more fitting of your stature."<br>"I have adopted many appearances to vanish into the crowds when I needed to. This was just my favourite. Practical, and still imposing."  
>"Of course. And the medallion is..."<br>"Confidential, I'm afraid. Now, I'm going to be borrowing the Destructix for a while. I'm sure that won't be an issue." Mephiles asked. He removed one arm from behind his back, letting some form of energy arc between his fingers. "I'll even bring them right back... if they survive."  
>"Certainly."<br>"Excellent." He turned away, walking towards the group.

"Wait!" Finitevus called, approaching him. The dark hedgehog paused, closing his eyes.  
>"Yes?"<br>"I know what you want. Take me with you, and I can help. We want the same thing, after all."  
>"... Our plans are incompatible, and your presence will alert everyone to my goal. If I leave you behind, I am simply the mysterious and powerful benefactor who is assisting Scourge. Good day, Doctor." He opened his eyes, looking over the Destructix again, as Scourge stepped up beside him. "Now, you probably want to know what's in this for you?"<p>

"Telling us that would be good." Predator nodded.  
>"Of course, you are mercenaries. You follow the money, and so, I shall explain myself properly. My name, I have given, but none of you, save the good Doctor, have realised my epithets."<br>"Epithets?"  
>"Titles." Fiona corrected.<p>

Mephiles sighed. "I am the Lord of Shadow and the Bringer of Light. I exist in every moment of every living thing's life. I am Mephiles the Eternal, God of Time."  
>"A god? Like Enerjak?" Fiona asked. The deity chuckled. It was a horrible, painful sound, and it set everyone off a little.<br>"You wound me, Fiona. No, Enerjak was a mortal who achieved godhood. He was powerful, yes, but still the bottom of the ladder. I was at the top." He went on. "Of course, as an immortal being who has seen the rise and fall of entire civilisations, money has no value to me, so I don't carry it."  
>"Then how are you going to pay us?"<br>"Well, I shall... no, actually, explaining it would be dull. You deserve a demonstration."

Within a second, he had closed the gap between himself and Fiona, and touched one finger to her forehead. She screamed, more from shock than pain, as light enveloped her, pouring into her body. Her eyes blazed yellow, and her clothing turned white, as she collapsed against him.

"What the hell did you just do?" Lightning asked. Mephiles' cheeks rose, indicating another smile.  
>"Just wait and see." He commanded, as the vixen started to move again. She shook her head, and then looked down at her palm, as a small orb of light formed in it. On instinct, she thrust her hand at the wall, focusing her thoughts through her fingers. Instantly, a golden beam lanced out, and burned through the brickwork. A smile crossed her face, and she looked up at him.<p>

"Thanks..." She said, rubbing the back of her head. "I always wanted powers..."  
>"I know." He replied. She froze- she'd never met this person before, and he knew her private memories. Reasoning that he came with the divinity, she was about to leave, when he caught her shoulder. "By the way... I did want to give you something special... the Sword of the Sun-God... but alas, it has already been claimed by someone you know very well... I'm sure a smart young lady like yourself can understand who I mean..."<br>"_Him..._" She shuddered. Memories returned, invasive hands on her body, needle-like talons sticking into her sides, shrill voice in her ears, and those blazing, fiery slashes he called eyes.  
>"Yes..." He nodded. "And do you know something? I was the one that sealed him away."<br>"Can you keep him like that?"  
>"I can.<br>"I'm in."  
>"Excellent." He smiled without a mouth again, before stepping past her. "Now, I want you to understand something: I don't pay up front. You'll get your own powers when you have succeeded. If you fail, I'll take Fiona's away. So... are you in?"<p> 


	2. Chapter 2: Alliance

Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds (Chapter 2: Alliance)

Moebius was a world unlike any other reflection of Mobius. A world where darkness was the natural state of things, where the heroes fought for the right to impose their own iron-fisted rule, and their enemies tried in vain to preserve the peace.

The mightiest nation of this bizarre world was the vast Prower-Acorn Empire. Forged from the union of the zone's most powerful Adept and the brutal tactical cunning of the last of its royal line. Together, they had ousted or quelled their rivals, and absorbed more than half of the planet into their territory. Eighty per cent of the land in the world was governed from one building, a black-walled castle resting on a hill above the capital city.

Near-midnight, in the fortress' opulent master bedroom, the Empress herself, Alicia Acorn, relaxed on the bed, surrounded by young Moebian women, all in varying states of undress, some of them massaging her, and each other, some of them just relaxing, others already asleep. One of them, a sandy-furred rabbit, poked the squirrel's stomach.

"Want something, Buns?" Alicia asked, not opening her eyes.  
>"When's Miles getting' here?" She asked. "We got everyone together for him, and he ain't here."<br>"If I know him, he's busy.. I'll go look."  
>"If ya know him? He's your husband, Ally."<br>"Figurative language." She sat up, and turned to the edge of the bed, only to feel the lapine's arms around her middle.  
>"Send Anima, hun. She's faster."<br>"If you wanted a hug, you could've just asked." Alicia purred. "Anima, honey... Mommy needs you."

A flicker of light, and a Moebian lynx began to take form, glowing with a slight purple tinge. Her fur was a light, golden brown, turning black around her hands and feet. Her hair was black, neat, and clean cut. Her eyes glowed purple, and she had black markings on her face and arms. She wore a loose, airy purple dress, which seemed to float, as if there was a weak wind in the room.

"Mother, how may I help?" She asked, perching next to the squirrel. Anima was the most recent addition to the Suppression Squad. During their time in Freedom HQ, Alicia had located a server, operated by Nicole, a digital Freedom Fighter who was especially close to Sally Acorn, the empress' counterpart. After poking around in the computer's code, she had downloaded it, and, with Miles' help, she had created her own copy. Anima's Moebian side was not as a developed as Nicole's, so they made a few changes: They had quickly decided that, as they had worked on her together, Anima was their child, and they now treated her as such.

"Go and find your father, sweetie. He's late for his birthday present." She purred.  
>"Alright." She nodded, smiling faintly before warping into the ether again.<p>

***

At the base of the castle's hill, the air split open, and Mephiles stepped through, followed by Scourge, then Fiona, and finally the rest of the Destructix.

"Ah... home, sweet home." Scourge grinned.  
>"It's been a while since we were here, huh babe?" Fiona asked, sidling closer to him.<br>"Don't call me that. You lost the right to be all gushy with me when you ditched me."

"If you're quite done..." Mephiles sighed. "I am going to negotiate with Miles. Scourge, you are in charge here."

With that, he turned, and walked off towards the building.

***

In one of the castle's labs, Miles Prower-Acorn, Emperor of Moebius, worked tirelessly. On the table in front of him sat the chestplate of a some kind of armour. He picked it up, and strapped it to a nearby dummy, little more than a torso and head on a pole. Backing up, he pointed his hand at the armour, purple sparks coalescing into an orb between his fingers. A purple arrow exploded from it, streaking from his grip and crashing into the dummy. It was knocked over, pitched into the wall, and Miles walked after it, stooping to inspect the damage.

The plate was completely undamaged, A grin crossed his lips, a rare expression for him, as he picked up the dummy, and left it standing where it had landed He grabbed a small recording device, and pressed the button.

"Godkiller Project, day four. Morganite insulation is complete, the armour is now immune to energy attacks. Only the inner shock-absorbers remain, to protect myself from blunt trauma. Once that is done, I need never fear another Adept."

With a whistle, Anima appeared behind him. He turned, and his satisfied grin gave way to a more genuine smile, and he embraced his daughter.

"Hello, my dear. Is something the matter?"  
>"Father, you're running late for something. Mother wishes you to return the bedroom."<br>"Oh yes... Sorry, but I've been working. It's important."  
>"Dad, it's your birthday, you shouldn't be working."<br>"I like working on my projects, though. It's what I do."  
>"Alright, but you have somewhere to be."<p>

Miles nodded, and threw aside his labcoat. Beneath it, he wore a traditional red military uniform, with pointed black pauldrons and gold trim, black trousers, supported by a belt, and red combat boots with steel toecaps. Grey gauntlets covered his forearms, and he grabbed a black, heavy cape from a nearby chair and fixed it under his shoulder-pads. He turned back to face her, then froze.

"Anima, I want you to return to your Mother and tell her that I will be delayed a little further. " He spoke. He was calm, collected, but there was a sense of dread in his voice that left her unnerved.  
>"What's happening."<br>"Tell you later. Just go."

Anima nodded, and faded away. A moment later, Miles' shadow began to move on its own, stretching up the wall behind him with its arms spread wide. "And you are?"

"My name is Mephiles."  
>"You're not like the others."<br>"Ah yes, the cultists that took my name in the past."  
>"You're the genuine article, aren't you?"<br>"Yes."  
>"Can I help you with anything?"<br>"I require your assistance for something. I have begun a plan wherein I require the use of the Destructix as a distraction. They are led by your former rival, Scourge, and his now-ex girlfriend."  
>"And this is my problem because?"<br>"Things between Scourge and Fiona have gone downhill, and his time in prison has made him... competent. He has made it clear to me that he intends to kill Fiona when the plan is done, and I know that's something you don't want to live through a third time."

Miles' eyes widened, and he froze, staring at the wall opposing him.

"You know that I am right. So here is what I want you to do: I want you and your wife to shelter the little vixen, keep her away from Scourge, and give her spirits a little boost. I also want you to assist in the inevitable conflict with the Freedom Fighters."  
>"I will do the former, but the latter... I'm not interested. What's in it for me?"<p>

"Emperor, I would ask you to think of your dear child." Mephiles hissed. Miles whirled, energy exploding into life around his palms, eyes blazing.  
>"You stay away from her!" He roared. "You can threat me, but if you so much as touch my wife or daughter, and I will find a way to kill you!"<br>"Silly little man... I don't intend to harm Anima. I want to help her."  
>"Help?"<br>"Yes... If you do this for me, I will give her an organic body."  
>"You can do that?"<br>"I can. I'm a god, after all. Creation is a power that we all share. We can even bring back the dead. Wouldn't you like to see Anna and Faye again? Because that can be arranged."  
>"No... Leave them out of this. Let them have their rest. Let me kill Scourge when the time is right, maybe..."<br>"Certainly. I won't need him beyond this plan."  
>"Then you have a deal."<p>

Mephiles stepped out of Miles' shadow, taking his own form. He held out his hand, and the fox shook it apprehensively.

"If you're going with this plan, the Destructix will need accomodation..." Miles mused. "Will an annex suffice?"  
>"Certainly, though I imagine Fiona will find her way to the main castle sooner, rather than later." "You'll also need to deal with Chaos Poisoning in Scourge. I can drain Anarchy from Fiona, but I cannot, and will not, help Scourge."<br>"I can deal with that." Mephiles nodded. "Go and tell your wife and child, and your... guests. I will inform Scourge of the arrangements and bring his team here."  
>"Of course."<p>

***

Ten minutes and one very awkward explanation later, Miles, Alicia, and Anima had returned to the throne room. The revelation that Scourge would be staying so close had not gone down well, since the vast majority of Alicia's harem were former victims of Scourge, but Miles had assured them that they would be safe. Now the two rivals stood across from each other, glaring.

"I'm letting you stay because I have something to gain from it..." Miles said. "However, I'm going to establish a few rules. First off, if I catch you on my throne, there will be repurcussions."  
>"What sort of repurcussions?"<br>"Try it, and find out. Second, Anima here is myself and Alicia's daughter. We're too busy to care for an organic child at the moment, so we created her. Stay away from her."  
>"Fine, I'm not into computers anyway."<br>"And third, if any of you enter the central tower, where I, Alicia, Anima, and our guests live, without being invited, I will kill you."

The Destructix began to snigger amongst themselves. The idea that this slighter, lean young man could even hurt them was ridiculous.  
>"You? Kill us? Yeah, right!" Scourge voiced what the team were thinking.<p>

A second later, Miles appeared in their midst, a flash of purple rippling through the room. One of his tails had stabbed straight through the chest of Flying Frog. The amphibian gurgled, as he tore the unlikely weapon free, and warped again, drawing a sword from the scabbard on his hip in the same motion. Reappearing, the tip of the blade pointed at Scourge's throat.

"Yes. Right." The fox said. "You can have Annex Four."

Scourge's eyes flicked to Mephiles, but the deity raised his eyebrow, as if to ask what he was expected to do, as Miles teleported back to his throne. "I'm required to let you live for now, but if you violate my rules, well, I'll cut the deal off, and slaughter you like the rabid animal you are."

With that, the Moebian royal family vanished from the room entirely. Scourge turned to his mysterious benefactor, but the ebon hedgehog was already gone, so he turned to his allies. Most of them were standing around the body of Frog as he bled out, but Fiona was slinking away into a corridor. Shrugging off the death of his least stable comrade, he followed her.

***

In the royal bedroom, Miles, Alicia, and Anima reappeared, the various girls eyeing Miles cautiously.

"You need not fear Scourge." He said. "Anima is monitoring him constantly, and if he so much as enters this tower, I will kill him."  
>"Why are you even letting him live in the first place?"<br>"I have my reasons. Primarily, I have assured that nobody will disturb Anna and Faye. I will also be able to prevent Fiona from sharing their fate. Finally, once the plan I am assisting Mephiles with is done, I will be given carte blanche to kill Scourge."

"Father, you may want to see this." Anima announced, handing a digital screen to him. It showed one of the passages leading off from the throne room, where Fiona stood opposite Scourge.

_"__Where you going?"_ The hedgehog asked, sneering at her.  
><em>"<em>_I just had to get out of there... Scourge, listen. I'm sorry. I screwed up, and my plan wouldn't have helped. I should've stayed, and we could've made a bolt for it together."_ She said, walking up to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and leaned on his scarred chest._"__Can you forgive me? Can we try again?"_

Scourge closed his eyes, put his hands on her shoulders, and let out a heavy sigh.

_"__You stupid fucking bitch."_ He pushed her away from him slightly, shoving her into the wall. He lifted his knee into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her as she tried to scream, then backhanded her across the jaw, knocking a few teeth loose. She crashed to the ground, receiving Scourge's boot in her stomach for her troubles. "_You think it's that fucking easy!?"_

"I've seen enough." Miles snarled. He passed the screen back, and flared energy up around his body. "Ally, with me."  
>"Right."<p>

***

In the corridor, Fiona scrambled away from Scourge, who slowly followed her, cracking his knuckles. As he approached her, however, a purple beam sliced down the passage, catching him in the chest and bowling him off his feet. Before he could hit the ground, Miles reappeared, and kicked him further awayin a cloud of obscenities.

Fiona curled up, sobbing quietly, as Alicia slid her arms underneath her, and scooped her up, holding her close to her chest. Miles approached them both, and warped them back into the bedroom. She set the vixen down on the bed, as the others crowded around her., removing her boots. The squirrel sat beside her, hugging her gently, as she wrapped the sheets around her.

"Ah thought the green bean had the hots for her..." Buns nudged Miles.  
>"When we turned against them both, Fiona fled in order to get help. Of course, Scourge didn't take it well."<br>"Poor thang... She don't understand Scourge, does she?"  
>"It would appear not."<p>

"Why are you helping me?" Fiona croaked, staring up at them.  
>"It's a long, sad story, Fiona." Alicia offered a weak smile. "Look around you, at all these ladies... Bar Anima, who Miles and I created, all of them, myself included, have been where you are now."<br>"Because of Scourge?"  
>"Yes." Anima nodded. "Scourge is a womanizer, and a brute. He cares nothing for those he forms a relationship with, only what they can give him."<br>"You mean sex, right?"  
>"Yes."<br>"That's bull..."  
>"How can you be so certain, with all of us standing here?" One of the women, who bore a resemblance to Julie-Su, asked.<br>"Because Scourge can't get it up." She admitted. The room descended into uproarious laughter, even Miles cracked something that might've been a satisfied smirk.  
>"Well, if that ain't the best thang that coulda happened ta him!" Buns jeered.<br>"Bastard deserves it, he can live with that for ages." Another girl spoke up.  
>"Yeah, I'm almost tempted to ask for his life to be spared, just so we can see him suffer!" Said a third voice.<p>

"Well, thank you for that, Fiona." Miles regained his composure. "You've lightened the mood, but I can assure you, his... issues... are a very recent occurrence..."  
>"How recent?"<br>"Put it this way. You know why he threw me out?" Buns asked.  
>"Because you were sick, and couldn't keep up?"<br>"Isat what he told ya? Heh, nah... Ah got the boot 'cuz I wouldn't let him pork me behand yer back. Okay, sure, Ah was mainly thinkin' about mahself, but Ah'm not a fan o' cheaters. Ah've been on the other sahde o' that, and it don't feel good. The thing about me bein' sick wuz, lahk a lot o' his better ideas, stolen from Patch."  
>"And he started taking shots at me after that." A Mina lookalike added. "He said he wanted me to be his "Personal Entertainment." I took him up on that, like a complete dumbass, but fortunately, Miles and Alicia were able to save me. We all cheered when we found out he had been taken to the No-Zone..."<p>

"This still doesn't answer all my questions... I mean, you guys hated me before..."  
>"We didn't hate you..." Alicia smiled. "You were just in my way. Now that you're not on my throne, you're just another pretty little victim of Scourge's that needs our help." She reached down, and gently stroked the younger girl's muzzle. Fiona flinched as her fingers touched the bruise, but relaxed, and let her get on with it. "Miles has a different reason, though."<br>"He does?"

"Yes." The fox cut in. "You recall how things were between you, Sonic, and Tails?"  
>"That mess? Yeah, what about it?"<br>"Well, things were much the same here. I was in love with a beautiful young vixen named Anna- your counterpart, of course. She had... issues, but those didn't matter to me. In my mind, she was perfect. Well, barring one little detail, of course..."  
>"Which is?"<br>"She wanted Scourge. He knew I loved her, so naturally, he jumped at the chance to get on my nerves. He took her in, but he quickly got bored and started to abuse her. It got worse, and worse... until eventually, he murdered her."  
>"What!?"<br>"He murdered your counterpart, to spite me. And then he did it again..."  
>"H-how..."<br>"A while later, another version of you showed up. Her name was Faye... She was an unfortunate young girl, she just wanted to be a doctor. But her boyfriend, the Tails of her world, had gone insane and was attempting to roboticize the entire planet. She fled, and ran into me. After explaining her story, I agreed to protect her, so long as she stayed away from the castle, where Scourge was. We gradually fell for each other... but then her ex showed up. Mecha Tails, to coin a name for him, was outraged. He attacked me, and we fought for a while, but he had the upper hand, until he realised that he was terrifying Faye. He ran off, and I took her back home to recover. Unfortunately, the battle was rather large, and highly publicised. Scourge found her... and he... He broke my legs, and my tails, and tore her apart in front of me..."

Fiona dissolved into fresh floods of tears, as Alicia held her tightly.

"He's going to do the same to me!" She cried, clinging to the squirrel, burying her head in the queen's shoulder, her tail curling around her.  
>"No, he's not." She whispered. "Because we won't let him."<br>"R-really?"  
>"Yes, really." Alicia nodded. "Right, Miles?"<br>"Yes. I cut my deal with Mephiles in order to protect you. He is going to allow me to dispose of Scourge when his plan is done." Miles confirmed, sitting beside the embracing pair. "You'll be safe with us."

"Thank you..." Fiona closed her eyes again, huddling close to Alicia.  
>"You're welcome, Fiona." Miles replied. Alicia put one hand on his, and sighed.<br>"Happy Birthday, sweetie. I just wish it could've gone better."


	3. Chapter 3: Adversary

Far away from Moebius, in another plane entirely, a single structure floated in the ether. It vaguely resembled a crystalline tower. Despite its size, it was home to a scant two inhabitants, both of them survivors of their own timeline's destruction, simply by virtue of being outside their zone when it was destroyed.

The reason they had come here, to the Spire, was simple. Inside its walls, there were thousands of diamond-shaped crystals, each of them glowing brightly, illuminating the Spire without any need for lights. Looking into any of them would've revealed their purpose: Each contained an image of a world, all of them like Mobius and Moebius.

One of the inhabitants, a grey hedgehog with wild quills and yellows eyes, paced around the lowest floor of crystals. He wore a white t-shirt, close fitting, and marked with a cyan ring, and tattered, faded jeans, and his exposed arms were marked with glowing teal lines, ending in a circle on the back and palm of each hand, and he floated in an aura of the same colour, passing between the stones.

Since the death of their zone, a splinter of the Prime timeline, he and his companion had lived in the Spire, and used the crystals within to monitor the worlds that still remained, taking it upon themselves to prevent them from sharing the fate of their own. In this task, they had one consistent foe, something that appeared and disappeared quickly, and left billions dead and entire worlds broken in its wake.

As he hovered, one of the crystals began to dim, and turn black. This was the warning system that they had set up, in case their enemy reared its head again. Taking a quick look at the identifying plaque underneath the stone, he moved into the centre of the room, then ascended rapidly. The floors of the Spire, bar the ground one, were a set of rings, stacked atop each other, with a gaping hole in the middle, which made it very easy to reach the top for him. Landing, he ran for his companion's door, and knocked on it, before pushing it open anyway.

Her room was sparse, lit by a ring of seven torches. In the middle of them sat his partner, a lilac-furred cat, wearing a heatproof white jumpsuit and little else. She was sitting with her feet together and her hands on her knees, eyes closed, her tail twitching in the air behind her.

"Blaze, he's appeared again." He said. Blaze sighed heavily, rising to her feet. As she turned to face him, she fixed him with her piercing yellow eyes, stretching herself out. With a snap of her fingers, the seven flames extinguished.  
>"When, and where."<br>"3243, Moebius."  
>"Is this the big one?"<br>"I think so."  
>"Then we go to Mobius Prime first." She said.<br>"You know they're familiar with your counterpart from the Sol Mobius, right?"  
>"Yes, but they're also familiar with other versions of themselves. You should be more worried about yourself. That <em>was<em> when your yougner self was running around and making a fool of himself."  
>"Blaze, I'm a head taller than I was back then." Silver smiled. "They'll notice,"<br>"As long as you're sure... We'd best get ready."

Silver turned, and ran out of the room, leaving the cat alone. She walked over to her wardrobe, and opened it, grabbing a purple jacket, pulling it on and zipping it up. She slid her feet into a pair of matching shoes with shallow heels, putting on a pair of white gloves. She pulled her shoulder-length hair back, and tied it up, then lefther room, and jumped back to the ground, slowing her fall by projecting flames from her feet, landing gracefully. A moment later, Silver descended from his own room, now wearing protective boots and gauntlets, each with golden rings around the ends, split by a line of glowing energy. He had donned a grey trenchcoat, and held a gleaming golden ring in his hand.

"All set?" He asked. She nodded, and he threw the ring into the air. It enlargedm anda shimmering portal took form in the centre of it. Sharing a quick glance, both of them leapt into the void.

***

Back on Moebius, Scourge limped into the annex that Miles had provided, fresh from the vulpine's attack.

"Hey, Mephiles!" He shouted at empty space. The ebon hedgehog appeared from his shade, tilting his head slightly.  
>"Something the matter?"<br>"Miles just beat the crap out of me!"  
>"I saw." He blatantly didn't care, it seemed.<br>"And you didn't do anything about it? You've got a deal with him too, right?"  
>"Our deal dictates that he can't kill you until the time is right, by which point our plan will already be complete, and he will be dead. It said nothing about any fights. Why did he attack you?"<br>"I was beating Fiona up, and he and Ice Queen just appeared and kicked me down, then took her with them."  
>"Good."<br>"Good? How is it good?"  
>"Because Miles has saved Fiona, and now he has formed a connection between her and your previous victims."<br>"Oh... I get it! This is going to be him getting attached to her and thinking that he can save her, with that whole "make him suffer" thing."  
>"Exactly... However, I want you to hold still for a moment."<br>"Why?"  
>"The effects of Chaos Poisoning linger in you.. They stop your body from aging and reaching its prime, and they weaken you. I am going to cure that."<br>"Oh, sweet!"

***

In the palace's medical wing, Fiona was receiving similar treatment, lying flat on a bed while Miles carefully drained the Anarchy Energy from her, Alicia and Anima watching. Her fur started to look less washed-out, and her eyes brightened a little. Her shallow breathing began to deepen, as Miles shifted the absorption vortex into one hand, forming his personal favourite attack, Anarchy Disruption, in his other palm. The ability was designed to destabilize a victim's body, essentially disintegrating them. But on a Mobian, it had the opposite effect, slowly healing her body. Her teeth set themselves back in place again, her bruises faded, and a few other scars knitted back together.

The two streams of energy faded, and Miles stepped back, allowing her to sit up. She stretched herself out, testing her body for a moment or two, then smiled at her new friends, hugging all three of them.

"Thank you." She beamed. Alicia returned the hug quickly, before beginning to pet her. She flinched, but the squirrel's gentle hands began to relax her, and she leaned on her shoulder.  
>"You're remarkably okay with this, Fiona."<br>"I'm actually kinda bi." She admitted, blushing heavily. "I'm used to things like this, and you're quite gentle."  
>"Oh, sweet, same here."<br>"I guessed." The two of them chuckled for a moment.

"If I may interject..." Miles approached them, voice low. "We can't trust Mephiles."  
>"Really? What gave it away, honey?" Alicia smirked. Fiona giggled quietly at her friend's comment.<br>"Well, the fact that there were three foreign energy types in Fiona. The Anarchy which I had to drain, the light energy that you discussed,and a third one."

Fiona stared at him, a pit forming in her stomach. Whatever this was, it wasn't good. Miles looked worried, and despite Scourge talking the fox up as a coward, it took a lot to rattle him.

"What was it..."  
>"Some kind of inky blackness, infesting your mind. He's been messing with your head, Fiona. I don't know what he's done, I don't know how he did it, and I don't know why he has, but he has. You need to be careful of what you do, Fiona, because it might not be you doing it."<br>"Oh my gods..."  
>"Didn't you make a deal with him?" Alicia asked.<br>"He came to me, not the other way around, and I couldn't refuse. You don't refuse him if you want to live." Miles slumped into his chair, both hands covering his face.  
>"How did you even know it was him?" Anima asked.<br>"He just felt... wrong. When your shadow starts to change shape and talk to you, it's a bit of a sign." Miles groaned. "I thought that, if he was a fake, I would hear him out and kill him. But he's not a fake. If we want to make it through this, we're going to have to be extremely careful. Fiona, you are staying with myself and Alicia. I don't want you leaving our sight."  
>"I-I understand..."<br>"Anima..."

"Dad?"  
>"He... said he would give you a living body..." He sighed. "It was another reason to accept at the time. If he does that... I want you to build some failsafes into your mind now. If he tries to corrupt you, I can trigger those and free you."<br>"Okay, Dad." Anima nodded.  
>"I swore that if he harmed either you or your mother, I would kill him. I don't know how I'm going to do that, but I will." The fox lowered his head. "I'm sorry."<p>

***

In the annex, Scourge stumbled, getting used to his newly-aged body. He now looked as a twenty-one year old should, and had the physique of a brawler. He admired his new form, and grinned, flexing his new muscles. At the same time, however, Mephiles did not seem enthused.

"He knows."  
>"Hm?"<br>"Miles has become aware of my tampering with Fiona's mind. We'll need to step things up."  
>"Damn kid's too smart for his own good."<p>

Mephiles didn't reply, he simply faded into his own shade, leaving the annex and reappearing in the lab, much to the shock of those presence.

"Hello."  
>"What brings you here?" The fox stood up, quickly regaining his composure. He carefully positioned himself between the dark deity and his friends. Mephiles folded his arms behind his back once more, and slipped passed him, pacing towards the lynx. Immediately, Alicia was between them, spreading her arms.<br>"Leave my daughter out of this." She growled. He didn't stop, and passed straight through her as he drew near.  
>"I told your husband, I mean her no harm. In fact, I'm going to make her life better."<p>

The lynx shrank away from him scooting backwards of the desk she was perched on, eyes wide. With a snap of his fingers, the room around them turned grey, frozen in time. He reached out, hand gripping her head. Energy arced between them, as she cried out, trying to squirm free. The lilac glow of her body faded, and her slightly translucent body solidified. She shook, gasping as her lungs began to fill with air, and her heart started beating. The table felt cold on her skin now, stinging her legs.

Time resumed flowing again, Miles storming towards the hedgehog. Mephiles turned, and deposited the dazed lynx into his arms, melting away again. Alicia and Fiona ran over, as he gently laid her out on the bed, Fiona looking around for something she could use to help.

"Anima! Anima, are you alright?" His tone struck the vixen. He sounded desperate, almost pleading for the newly-organic girl to be unharmed. It was rather obvious that Miles had become almost a different person since he had created her. He seemed to be ruled by his paternal instincts now. "Anima..."  
>"Let me take a look." Fiona said, grabbing a stethoscope and a thermometer.<br>"Alright. Oh, Moebians hearts are on the other side."  
>"I know, that's how we rumbled Patch." She replied, sticking the glass rod into the lynx's mouth, pressing the end of the stethoscope to her chest. "Heartbeat's regular... Temperature seems alright.."<br>"Just give her a full checkup, please..." Alicia asked, clutching her daughter's hand.  
>"Sure."<p>

Miles slumped into a chair beside the bed, head in his hands once more. His ears folded back, his tails falling limp behind him.

"Oh gods... What have I done..."

***

Mobius Prime was an altogether brighter world. It had a long and rich history, and every world was, in some way, a reflection of this one. Despite that, its close relationship with Moebius had led to some issues, especially due to the actions of Scourge and Patch, and the defection of Fiona.

In the heart of the Acorn Kingdom's Great Forest, the Freedom Fighters were gathered in their favourite retreat, the recently-rebuilt Freedom HQ as they relaxed after another mission. On one couch, Sonic and Sally sat in each other's arms, Sally leaning on her partner's shoulder. Sonic wore a red, short-sleeved jacket, with multiple pockets for equipment, a black t-shirt, slightly tattered denim jeans, along with his trademark red and white shoes. Sally had a white combat-grade body glove on, with her ever-present blue boots and sleeveless jacket over the top of those.

Across from them were Bunnie and Antoine, still wearing their usual attire- Bunnie in her brown coat and purple top, her lower body devoid of clothing due to its metallic nature. Antoine sat beside her, still in his guardsman's uniform, though his sword had been removed from his sat at the end of the same couch, having swapped out her red and white dress for a combat suit similar to Sally's, in her usual colours. Finally, Tails sat on his own chair, clad in a white t-shirt with a quote from a movie the others had never seen written across it, cleaner, darker jeans, his own shoes covering his feet. His gloves had been replaced with gauntlets, each one riddled with nanotech.

All of them had grown up, bodies developing and filling out, each of them slightly bulkier due to their heavily active lifestyle, but none moreso than Tails. Much like Miles, he was taller now, a few inches above Sonic. His shoulders were broad, and he had a little more muscle mass than his twin.

A moment later, a seventh figure appeared in the room. Nicole's feline body took shape from a multitude of hard light projectors, still wearing her purple, toga-esque dress and nothing else. Nicole was under a lot of stress at the moment. After a stint under the control of the Iron Dominion, she had fallen from public favour. People feared her now, some even calling for her to be shut down. Most of her friends had been filled with righteous outrage at the idea- Nicole had created their city, their home, and kept them safe, and was integral to the war effort, and furthermore, none of the others had faced such opposition after their own turns as brainwashed servants of various enemies. However, Nicole was not, by nature, a self-confident or fiery person. She had simply withdrawn into herself, hiding from their abuse. Worse, the apparent ringleader of the anti-Nicole sentiment, Mina Mongoose, was a megastar, and she had written a scathing, brutal song about how terrifying Nicole was, and it was currently topping the charts and getting played on all the radio stations and channels, leaving the lynx afraid to even listen to either.

Putting on a brave face, she turned to Sally, floating towards her.

"Sally, I am detecting a Warp Ring incoming."  
>"Where from?"<br>"I don't know, the location is not one I recognise."  
>"Block it."<br>"That's the thing, I'm trying, and it's still coming through."

A moment later, a golden ring split the air above them, and the whole team stood up, fixing the portal with an iron stare. A second later, Silver and Blaze dropped through, and the team slumped back into their seats, relieved, though confused.

"Silver? What is it this time?" Sonic groaned. Silver's appearances generally tended to result in him accusing one of them of being a world-destroying traitor, and then find out that this was a stupid leap in logic based on an inability to properly research things.  
>"And Blaze, what are you doing here?" Amy asked.<p>

"I can answer all of your questions easily." Silver said. "First off, Blaze here is not the Blaze you know. You're familiar with her Sol Dimension counterpart, while this is the Blaze of our world. As for myself, I'm ten years older than the Silver you know. I've already dealt with the traitor thing, and though I can't tell you who it is, don't worry, it's not as straightfoward as one of you going crazy. Younger-me will fix it eventually, as long as you put up with me."

"I understand." Sally nodded. "So what brings you here, by Warp Ring, no less?"  
>"Well, a while ago, our timeline collapsed, and the survivors scattered across the multiverse. Blaze and I found this place we call the Spire. Inside it, there was an observatory that let us see into every world. We started using it to try and track this entity, and prevent him from doing it again. While we were there... he appeared in person for the first time in ages. We got a handle on his energy trace, and we found that it's everywhere... He's been influencing events for a long time, shaping them to suit his own ends... For example, he was the one that latched Mobius and Moebius together, stopped their energy types from destroying the latter on contact. He brought Eggman to this world too. And we know he's got something to do with one of your former allies falling to her enemies."<br>"Which one?" Sally asked.  
>"Well, he appeared on Moebius, so it's likely to be Fiona." Blaze said.<br>"Moebius... What was he doing?"  
>"He has Scourge, and the Destructix, and seems to have pulled the Suppression Squad under his control too. We know he's probably going to come after you, and we think he's going to try and kill her." Silver went on. "Her kids in one of a this reality's splinters vanished. All four of them."<br>"Fiona had four kids?" Amy asked. "Didn't think she'd be the sort..."  
>"She got twins, twice."<br>"Is that lucky, or not?"  
>"Well, she loved them all dearly, so..."<p>

"Alright, let's get this straight." Sally said. "You're telling me that this mysterious entity is the cause of all our troubles with Scourge and Eggman, and he's also brainwashed Fiona, who is actually genuinely good person, and at least one timeline, becomes a loving mother of four?"  
>"Yes."<br>"Oh dear..."  
>"Hm?"<br>"We've all treated her like dirt... Everyone except Sonic and Tails has been spewing bile at her since then, and we never even guessed that someone or something was messing with her head... It seems too obvious now..."  
>"I always thought that might be the case..." Tails said, "To be honest, I blamed Finitevus, but I didn't want to say anything, because I knew you wouldn't believe me."<br>"It's possible that he's been messing with your heads too. I don't know whether he specifically wants to make her life hell, or if she wants to get at you guys, but I think he's aiming to have her killed. Scourge isn't even pretending to like her now, he hates her for leaving him when the Squad turned on him."  
>"We have to help her..."<br>"And we will." Sally stood up. "I have one more question: Why Fiona? She's not an adept, she was never a national treasure like Sonic, or a great protector like Nicole. Beyond our inner circle, the only people she really meant something to were Doctor Quack and his family, and Nic Weasel, both of whom mentored her."  
>"I can't tell you that. All I can tell you is that she's a major cog in the machine of events leading towards a way to defeat him. You all are. Everyone here has their own role to play, whether it's supportive or active, you'll be involved, but she's something of a lynchpin." Silver explained.<p>

"Think about it. Sonic carries some guilt over the turn her life took, since he had a hand in it. Tails loves her. And you two are among the most powerful adepts in our world. If we have to fight him physically, you two are our best options. If he gets her killed, he's got a hell of a trump card to play in his mind games." Blaze added.

"Alright then. If this thing is as powerful as you say, then we're hitting a hell of a threshold. Tails, fill Emerl in on this, we'll need him." The squirrel turned to face her friend.  
>"Sally, I don't understand, Emerl is dead. Has been for ages." Tails stammered, as he and Nicole began to smile nervously, eyes wide.<br>"You stopped pestering the council to let you rebuild him after a while, and Nicole wasn't upset until that horrible concert. He's alive, isn't he. You rebuilt him, and kept him hidden, so that Nicole could still spend time with him, didn't you?" She pried. The fox and lynx looked at each other, then nodded once.

"Yeah, I did."  
>"Well, let's get him filled in. Take Silver and Blaze with you, so he can add their powers to his pool."<br>"Alright, it will be done."

***

The journey to the workshop was a short one, but even so, Silver and Blaze drew a few odd looks as they passed by. Still, they ignored the pressuring eyes, to much better success than Nicole. The Lynx trudged through the streets she had once hovered over, head down, sticking close to her friends.

"Is something the matter, Nicole?" Blaze asked, laying a hand on her shoulder.  
>"It's just... I created this city, every bit of it is a part of me, I can control it, shape it..."<br>"So?"  
>"I was brainwashed, twice. Both times due to an oversight in my defences, that Sally has taken responsibility for...But people are afraid of me now. When I was enslaved, I used my powers to capture people in their homes, and take them to be converted into servants like myself... They say I have too much power. They think I'm a threat."<br>"Are you a threat?"  
>"I don't want to be..."<br>"And can you be controlled anymore?"  
>"No."<br>"Did anyone actually get converted?"  
>"No. I was freed the first time, and stalled, and I broke free with Tails' help the second, before I could change anyone."<br>"Then don't worry. Ignore them. They should appreciate you for what you've done, not fear you for what someone else made you do. You don't deserve to be treated like this."

"Th-thank you..."  
>"You're welcome."<p>

"We're here, guys." Tails broke in, unlocking the door of the lab. Inside stood a purple walrus, clad in white protective gear and a labcoat, a pair of goggles on his head.

"Hey Tails, Nicole." He smiled.  
>"Hi, Rotor."<br>"Silver? Blaze? What are you doing here?"  
>"It's a long story, but basically this dark entity has showed up on Moebius and we need to stop him. Also, I was totally right about Fiona, and we need to save her."<br>"I see." He said. "I'll get the full story later. What brings you here."  
>"Emerl. Sally knows, and she wants him for this."<br>"Oh, I see. Well, by all means..."

Rotor pressed a button on his desk, and the floor began to slide open, revealing a set of stairs.  
>"Wait here." Tails said, jumping into the pit. At the bottom sat a small room, with a bed, a bookcase, and a TV. Lying across the bed was a golden-yellow robot, accented with orange and white. It was androgynous build, with bulky shoulders and hips that were equally wide. His upper arms and thighs were slim, while his forearms and legs were much bulkier. Both his chest and forearms were marked with glowing blue circles, arranged in a triangle. Three optic sensors occupied his face, two in the expected places, and the third at the base of a three-pronged crest.<p>

"Emerl, wake up." He commanded, nudging the robot's shoulder. He stirred, systems humming, whining, hissing as they reactivated. His optics lit up in blue, and he rolled to his feet, looking down at the fox.

"Hey Em."  
>"Tails?" His voice was strange, but calm in tone, and he hopped off the bed, looking quizzically around the room. "I thought I was to remain asleep until Niki arrived today."<br>"Change of plan. Sally knows about you, she probably always knew. We've got something huge coming up, and she wants you involved."  
>"How shall I do that?"<br>"Hang back for now, public opinion of you and Nicole isn't stellar still, so only launch if I give one of the emergancy commands. Now come on, we've got two new friends upstairs for you to copy."  
>"Alright."<p> 


	4. Chapter 4: Mutual Kill

Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds (Chapter 4: Mutual Kill)

The Suppression Squad and Destructix had reconvened in the Great Hall, whith Mephiles floating above them, arms folded. The Squad had been surprised by the sight of Scourge's new body, bulkier, taller, sturdier, but otherwise, they waited for the deity to speak.

"The time has come to launch a first assault. I wish to see how this will go. Anima, I will need you to create some drones to use. Everyone else, arm yourselves." He commanded. They nodded, most of them splitting off, leaving only Miles' family and Fiona behind. "Do you not have somewhere to go?"  
>"No. We need no other weapons, and I want to watch over Anima."<br>"Fair enough."

A taller, entirely grey copy of Anima began to take form, eyes glowing purple. Another one appeared beside it, then another, and another. Hordes of Anima copies formed, organized into a large team, standing at attention with a dull look on their faces.

"Done." She said, still keeping as much distance between her and Mephiles as was possible.  
>"Excellent. Now prepare yourselves: I will not be joining you in battle, but I will be watching."<br>"Why not assist us?"  
>"I'm looking to see how well you perform on your own."<br>"I see." Miles nodded, scowling. Surely, he already knew what they were capable of. He knew far too much already, not knowing how well they did would be strange.

***

In Tails' lab, Emerl stood in the middle of the floor, while Blaze and Silver stepped back, their own auras fading. The robot's third optic closed, and he snapped his fingers, creating a small flame in his palm. Clenching his fist, the fire went out, while a teal ring illuminated on the back of his palm, and everything not bolted down took off, spiralling around the room a few times, before landing back in place.

"Nice..." He grinned at the two newcomers, before quickly crossing to Nicole and embracing her. She returned the hug, leaning on his chest, closing her eyes and smiling softly. "Missed you, Niki."  
>"We saw each other yesterday."<br>"Still missed you." He replied, kissing her. They savoured it for a moment, before Nicole tensed, and released him. "What is it?"

"Warp Ring, on the hill above the city. Lot of Anarchy Energy too..."  
>"Okay, Emerl, I want you to wait for my signal. Silver, Blaze, Nicole, with me." Tails took charge, already heading for the door. "Rotor, we've got a Moebian incursion, I want you to hold the for here with Em and Nicole. I'm not sure who else will be assisting, I'm going to talk to Sally about that."<br>"Right. Good luck."  
>"Thanks." Tails took off at a pace, Silver and Blaze following behind him, as he reached a finger to his com-bead, and tried Sally's channel.<p>

"Tails?"  
>"Moebian incursion. Nicole detected a Warp Ring and a load of Anarchy Energy."<br>"Do we know how many of them are here?"  
>"No."<br>"Then I'm bringing everyone."  
>"Send Amy to help Rotor in the city. Emerl can't go out in public."<br>"Good point. See you there."  
>"See you there."<p>

***

The shaky alliance between Suppression Squad and Destructix stood on a grassy hill, overlooking the city. All of them, save for Miles, Fiona, and Anima, were armed. Even Scourge had two knives in his pockets. The hedgehog strolled towards the edge, staring down at New Mobotropolis.

"This it?"  
>"They lack my family's taste for the overly grandiose." Alicia shrugged.<br>"The whole thing is made of nanites..." Anima mused. "Maybe if I can connect to it, I can control it."  
>"Do not worry about that." Mephiles interrupted. "Nicole is stronger than you for now."<br>"Oh, right."  
>"We're just waiting here for Blue to arrive, right?"<br>"Essentially."  
>"Why not go and trash the place?"<br>"They'll have picked up our signatures, and set up a lockdown." Miles replied. "Of course, if you feel like trying to body-check the shield, then go right ahead."  
>"Shut up, freak. So, how long's he gonna take?"<br>"Not long." Mephiles said.  
>"For the benefit of us without time powers, how long?" The hedgehog sighed.<p>

Before Mephiles could respond, a flash of green rippled over them, as Silver appeared, surrounded by Tails, Nicole, and Blaze. A second later, another flash went off, as Sonic brought himself, Sally, Bunnie, and Antoine into the mix.

"I believe that answers your question." Mephiles 'smiled' again.

"So, that's Mephiles?" Sonic tapped his foot. "Looks kinda like Shadow and Rouge had a kid."  
>"Mock him all you want, he's still the one pulling all the strings. Be careful." Silver commanded.<br>"Who's fighting who?"  
>"No time for that, they're comin' already!" Bunnie shouted, as the two opposing forces approached.<p>

In a flash, Sonic was gone, ramming his elbow into Scourge's ribs, at the same moment that the green hedgehog's fist made contact with his stomach. Both stumbled, Sonic winded, Scourge suffering a cracked rib.

"Gah, Destructix, tear him apart!" He roared. Simian nodded, and lunged for Sonic. Lightning jinked around, going for the opposite side, while Predator dropped from above. Eyes flicking upwards, the Freedom Fighter triggering a boost, shoving Scourge into a tree. He looked over his shoulder to see the mercaneries rounding on him.

"Focus on Scourge, I'll handle these three!" Blaze shouted to him, rushing forward.  
>"You sure?"<br>"Yes, n- look out!"

He whirled, a moment too late, and received his twin's boot in the stomach, knocking him down. Blaze stepped forward to assist, but her path was blocked by the mercenary trio.

"I thought you said you were going to fight us?" Predator smirked. "If you're confident enough to take us all on, then maybe this might be a decent hunt."  
>"Hunt?" Blaze scowled, raising an eyebrow. "You know what they say about cats and birds, right?"<br>"Uh..." The hawk blinked, as a devilish smile crossed Blaze's lips. She snapped her fingers, and immediately, all three were engulfed in fire, the inferno springing from beneath them. They screamed, struggling to escape the blast, until, with a second snap, the flames went out, and all three collapsed. Looking up, she spotted Sonic grabbing the collar of Scourge's jacket, throwing him to the ground, and dropping a spin attack on his torso, quills slicing into his skin. Satisfied that he could handle himself, she turned her attention to the rest of the chaos.

"Now, who else wants to try me?"

***

The hilltop had dissolved into Chaos. Sally, Bunnie, and Antoine squared off against their counterparts. Both squirrels held highly unconventional blades- Sally's was double-ended, forming an odd curve, blue energy flowing along the sharp edge, while an odd, spring-loaded hinge sat at the base of each blade. Bunnie brought her cybernetic parts to bear against her counterpart's full mech, though she also had a personal shield generator attached to her organic arm's gauntlet. As per usual, Antoine dueled Patch with his sword, holding an advantage due to his having both of his eyes. Nicole, meanwhile, stood opposing Fiona, both staring apprehensively at the other. Suddenly, Fiona broke, hurling two energy bolts at her former friend, only for them to rebound off of her shield.

"That's new..." The lynx mused, reaching out and skimming her mind. Flashes of memories, fears, and nightmares reached her, and she dropped the barrier. "You're afraid. You don't know who you should be fighting for... Don't worry about it, your beams can't hurt me."  
>"They can't?"<br>"They're light, and so is my body."  
>"Oh yeah, hologram."<br>"Indeed... Hold on, I'm just running a check on the others." She said, as Fiona continued to pitch bolts at her, each disappearing harmlessly off of her barrier. "_Good news, everyone, Fiona seems to be mostly free of Mephiles' influence at the moment. She wouldn't commit to attacking me until she was assured that I can't be hurt by light-based attacks._"  
>"<em>Miles is being pretty non-commital too...<em> " Tails replied. "_I'll see if I can talk to him._"

Above their heads, Miles dodged past everything Tails threw at him, flying away to maintain some distance.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" The Prime fox demanded. He paused, folding his arms as he watched his counterpart carefully. "Fiona's acting more like herself, and you're not even trying to fight me... I want answers."  
>"Very well." He replied, mimicking Tails' posture unconsciously. "You're evidently aware of who Mephiles is, and I presume you've become aware of what he's done with Fiona's mind."<br>"He brainwashed her, or did something. Whatever happened, he messed with her head, and made her act differently. He's why she went with Scourge."  
>"Exactly." He nodded. "Mephiles appeared to me, and asked Alicia and I to shelter Fiona, since Scourge has become... disenchanted... with her."<br>"Meaning he's turning violent?"  
>"Yes. However, I'm certain that Mephiles is playing both sides. He's working with Scourge too, and I'm not sure who he's in favour of, but I'd imagine that it's Scourge, given his antagonism towards you. I think killing her will suit that."<br>"We kinda worked that out on our own." Tails shrugged. "Why did you agree to work with Mephiles?"  
>"I didn't. I agreed to help Fiona, and I'm going to help her by leaving her with you." Miles replied. "I accepted the deal because he made thinly veiled threats against Ally and Anima, and before we came here, he transformed Anima into an organic, and she had... issues with that. I'm trying to protect my family, so I'm having to play rules lawyer a bit."<br>"Family?"  
>"Oh, yes. I married Ally not long ago. We felt a real spark when we created Anima together. As for her, Ally copied Nicole's code when we were in Freedom HQ. She's rather nice most of the time... I was hoping that, were she to meet you, it would be on better terms, but alas..."<br>"Oh, we've been destroying those drones... Blaze is melting them, won' t that hurt her?"  
>"Fortunately, she doesn't feel their pain."<br>"Phew... Well, we know Fiona was brainwashed, so she should be free from persecution... Although it doesn't seem to be much of an excuse for some of them. Nicole's getting a lot of stick for getting enslaved, even though Sally accepted responsibility for the gaps in her defences."  
>"Better to deal with them than get killed by that brute."<br>"True... I'll get Nicole to tell Fiona about this." He said. "_Nicole, I need you to tell Fiona that Miles and I discussed her situation, and the current plan is to just leave her here with us._"

On the ground, Nicole suddenly dashed forward, fading from view, before reappearing with her hands on Fiona's head.

"What are you-!?"  
>"<em>Sshhh, I'm setting up a mind-link so that we can communicate privately.<em>  
>"<em>Oh, this is weird...<em>"  
>"<em>You'll get used to it. Anyway, Tails and Miles have compared notes, and the plan appears to be to have you stay here with us. We know what happened to you, that Mephiles has been messing with your mind, so we can make sure you don't face jail time for what he made you do.<em>"  
>"<em>So what do I do?<em>"  
>"<em>Throw the fight. We're in such a position where I can convincingly catch you. You won't be able to help us with the Squad, but when we end this, you'll be coming home with us.<em>"  
>"<em>Thank you.<em>"

The link broke, and Fiona slumped to her knees, feigning a mental attack, and allowed Nicole to form a light barrier around her body.

***

Nearby, Sonic crashed into the ground, Scourge bombing towards him, only for the blue hedgehog to vanish in a cloud of dust. Scourge landed, turning as he tried to catch sight of his double. A foot cracked against the back of his skull, knocking him forward. Two hands snagged his jacket, dragging him backwards, as Sonic twisted, turning the hold into a throw. He grinned, jumping into the air and curling up. He shot forward, slamming into his head, rebounding away and landing neatly. Scourge rolled back to his feet, and turned, ramming into him again. Sonic allowed the hit to launch him, then dropped straight back to the ground, driving his foot into him.

"You're really slipping, green bean." He smirked. "Ever since you first turned green, you've gotten weaker. The first time, you took both me and Faker on, and beat us. Now? Shadow would've beaten you by now, 'cause he hits harder than me."

Scourge swung a hammer blow at Sonic, catching him off-guard. Stunned for a moment, he was unable to block the second blow, the knife lashing out and jabbing into his knee. Snarling in pain, he dropped to the ground, his opponent tearing the blade out.

"Mock me all you want, but you're still going to die." He grinned, raising the knife again.  
>"Yeah, about that..."<p>

A small bolt of lightning stabbed into the green hedgehog's back, sending him into a fit of pain, as Nicole grabbed Sonic and carried him back, putting him in another forcefield, as he grabbed his injured knee and charged energy into it, flesh knitting back together slowly. The current stopped, and Scourge slumped slightly, his clothes smouldering. He turned, looking up as Tails descended, smoke rising from his right gauntlet.

"Really?" He groaned, as the fox touched down, namesakes arcing behind him. "_You're_ gonna take me on?"  
>"If you don't think you can handle me, then by all means, you're welcome to give up."<br>"Well, what do ya know, the kid actually grew a pair..."

Pocketing the knife again, Scourge broke into a run, only to receive another prolonged shock. Knocked off his feet, Tails' hand closed around his neck, and he took off, soaring up above the treeline. The electric gauntlet sparked up again, and slammed into his stomach, releasing him at the same moment, sending him wheeling away. He began to fall, body still wracked with pain, unable to reorient himself. Before he could hit the groumd, though, Tails snagged him, shocking him again and hurling him upwards. Pointing his hands at the rising hedgehog, he unleashed another lightning bolt, striking him in the back before letting him fall again.

This time, when Tails caught up to him, he stopped his namesakes for a moment, then flipped himself over, as it starting a mid-air spin attack, brought both of them, hardened and sharpened, down onto his head, smashing him into the ground.

"You might be tough, Scourge, but you can't fight when you've got no footing, and yourmuscles are spasming due to electrocution." The fox smiled, slowly bringing himself back down to land. "You okay, Sonic?"

"Yeah, healing's a bit slow, but I'll be fine."  
>"Good..." He grinned, stepping past Scourge as he aimed to engage one of Anima's drones. The other Freedom Fighters turned back to their respective tasks at hand, leaving only Fiona to notice Scourge recovering all too quickly for someone who had recently suffered multiple electrocutions. His head was bleeding now, and he rubbed his back, as if questioning why his spine hadn't snapped. Then he turned to face the fox, currently blasting another drone, and pulled out one his knives, rushing him.<p>

"Tails, watch ou-!" Fiona cried, banging her fist on the wall of her shield bubble, a little too late, as the blade slid between his backbone and his shoulder-blade. He screamed, staggering, as Scourge caught him by the loose material of his shirt. The whole clearing stopped, and immediately, the Freedom Fighters had bigger concerns. Even Miles just stared from his vantage point, struggling to comprehend what was happening.

The shields collapsed, and Sonic rushed forward, only to stumble on his damaged leg, as Scourge plunged the knife into his victim's stomach. He tore it out, sideways, and then jabbed it into he chest. Drawing back for another strike, he was forced to change tact when a steel toecap collided with his temple. Wobbling backwards, he looked up to see Sally landing in between himself and Tails, tears streaming down her face, pure malice radiating from her expression, as the closest thing she had to a son of her own fell into Nicole's grip, and part of his gauntlet began to blink frantically. She charged him, only to receive the same response, and with his blinding speed, he quickly snagged her by the throat. He squeezed, lifting her off the ground, as he grinned at Sonic.

"So, after I've snuffed Queenie here, and finished off the mutant, you wanna be next?" He crowed. Sonic didn't respond, pushing himself upright, he hobbled as quickly he could muster, not slow by any means, but not fast enough to challenge his double. Scourge's foot snapped out, cracking into Sonic's skull, and knocking him down again, before turning back to Sally, still kicking and clawing at him as she struggled to breathe. He lifted the knife, turning it over in his fingers, as he prepared to jab it into her.

Then, with a soft click, the hand he was holding it in exploded.

At first, it had felt like a trio of needles piercing straight through his palm. Then, the hand itself had liquified, exploding into a mess of gore and twisted fingers. Scourge screamed, dropping Sally as he moved to clutch his injured limb. She scooted back, as all heads turned to see the source of the shot.

Lingering in one of the lengthening shadows, a Mobian shape with a three-pronged crest stood, holding its right arm outwards. A trio of gleaming blue lights activated on his face, as Emerl stepped into the light. The gizoid emblem on his right forearm was glowing, smoke rising from it. His mouthplate was shut, his optics blank.

"Leave, now." He hissed. He turned his hand over, clenching his fist as the teal, circular markings on Silver's hands appeared on his own, and he released a telekinetic wave, throwing all of the Moebians backwards. He walked slowly forward, watching Scourge's hand recover far faster than it should've. A warning flashed up on his HUD, _Temporal energy detected__._

As he approached Scourge, his left arm split open, armour pieces spreading out, as more parts filled the gaps. A rocket motor popped out of his elbow, the plate on his hand lifting up to allow two barbed spikes to extend from his knuckles. His right hand folded away into his wrist,the underside of the arm opening up to allow a gleaming, golden energy blade to extend from it.

The Gizoid broke into a run, boosters on his back firing up, the elbow rocket exploded into life. Scourge responded in kind, boosting forward. Pointing the sword forward, the outstretched blade forcing his foe to divert. Jinking to his right, that proved to be a mistake, as he ran right into the range of his left arm. The rocket-powered fist slammed into his right pectoral, spikes stabbing into his flesh. He dragged the spurs through his body, shredding muscle, rupturing blood vessels, tearing out two sizeable wads of flesh. Howling with pain once more, Scourge clutched his chest, teal light surrounding him again. He lifted into the air, turning over, and crashing back down. Sweeping his arm aside,, Scourge scraped over the ground, digging into the dirt. He was pulled free, thrown into the air, as Emerl's left arm returned to its normal configuration. The wrist gun fired, three shots stabbing his his shoulders, an another set into his gut, leaving him to crash down. His hand changed again, replacing itself with a large hammer, which he smashed down on Scourge's head, before switching back to his hand once more. He grabbed the hedgehog's throat, hoisting him into the air as he raised his blade, a ring of fire exploding around them both.

"I'm going to _gut_ you."  
>"Fuck off!" Scourge roared, jabbing his foot into the robot's gut. He flinched for a moment, then brought the blade down slicing the leg off at the knee. Ignoring the screams, he continued the motion, cutting through the other one as well.<p>

Mephiles, watching from above, sighed, and pitched a small orb at tbe Gizoid, blasting him apart from Scourge. He dove into the fire, grabbing the hedgehog by the shoulder, and jumping back to the rest of the remaining Squad.

"I have seen enough..." He said. "We will return." He snapped his fingers, and the whole area was plunged into blackness., obscuring everyone from each other's view. When the light faded, everyone who had arrived from Moebius was gone, Fiona included.

"Just when it couldn't get worse, he took Fiona..." Nicole groaned. Emerl turned to face the others, crowded around Tails' body. Sally cradled him, tightly holding onto his barely-breathing form, Sonic by her side, Antoine and Bunnie huddling around, trying to dress the wounds, all of them sobbing.  
>"What about Tails?" He asked "Is he-?"<br>"A-alive..." The fox wheezed. "Silver is helping me breathe... But it won't help for long..."  
>"I can see that... Niki, I can get him to the hospital before he dies." The golden robot announced, stooping to take Tails from his surrogate aunt. "I need you to go on ahead and set things up."<br>"Right..."

Emerl scooped Tails into his arms, and fired all four of his engines, blasting into the sky. He aimed for the city, soaring towards it, as Nicole vanished into the ether again. The others began to stand, Bunnie and Antoine supporting their friends.

"Silver..." Sonic snarled. "You came back here to help us... You said we all had a role to play! Was this what Tails' was? Stabbed to death by Scourge as some kind of sick motivator?! Some object to make Fiona feel guilty enough to shrug off the brainwashing!?"  
>"No..." Silver said. "I can save him. There's a way to do it, though it's risky. Blaze and I will get the object needed, you guys go back. By the time you get there, we'll be back already, time-travel and all."<br>"Silver, are you talking about..."  
>"Yes."<br>"We can't do that to him."  
>"Do what?" Bunnie demanded.<br>"You're not going to like it, but it's how Tails survived a similar event in my timeline, and we have the tech to make it almost a non-issue."  
>"What are you talking about?"<br>"We have to use Hyperion's core."


	5. Chapter 5: Regeneration

Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds (Chapter 5: Regeneration)

"You what?" Sonic said, almost a whisper, eyes blazing.  
>"I said we have to use Hyperion's core." Silver repeated.<br>"You're not gonna put that _thing_ back in his head."  
>"Hyperion is already in his head."<br>"Pardon?" Sally asked.

"When Sonic drained Hyperion's power, he lost his grip on Tails' body, and the core was forced to eject. But Hyperion was trying to take over Tails' body, so he wasn't even in the core anymore. He stayed buried in Tails' mind, waiting for him to absorb enough power to take charge again. He can't get out of there without dying, which isn't something he's keen on doing, which is the key to all of this."  
>"How so?"<br>"If Tails dies, so does Hyperion. If we fuse the core with Tails', it will allow Hyperion to heal his body, so he doesn't himself die. Then we use the tech that I have, which will keep Hyperion locked up. And that will help in the grand scheme of things: With practice, Tails will be able to achieve Hyper form at will, with no risk of Hyperion's influence getting through."

"Will it work?" Antoine asked.  
>"Yes."<br>"And there's no way that it can go wrong?"  
>"The restraints are Inhibitor Rings. If his arm gets cut off, then the ring will no long be ableto hold on, and Hyperion will get out. He'll repair the arm, but youll have to deal with him. Fortunately, the rings have some tech of their own: A timelock. It can be set to the second, with a maximum time limit of thirty minutes, and when it runs down, the rings will teleport back onto his wrists, and forcibly bind Hyperion again."<br>"Why not make them automatically warp back?" Sally asked.  
>"Because there may come a time when having thirty minutes of Hyperion is a good thing."<br>"You mean, something that we actually need Hyperion to fight?"  
>"Yes..."<br>"Alright, do it." Sonic said. "If this fails..."  
>"It won't, trust me."<br>"Fine..."

The Freedom Fighters turned, and headed back towards the city, trudging slowly, as Blaze looked at her partner.

"I don't like this. You know what that monster will do to him, and to Fiona."  
>"He'll overcome it, so will she. They're stronger than that." Silver sighed. "Besides, what else are we going to do?"<br>"I guess... Let's go then." She grabbed the Super Warp Ring.

Back on Moebius, the Suppression Squad reappeared, and Miles hurriedly grab Fiona, bundling her out of the room, closely followed by Alicia and Anima.

"Not letting you stay in a room with him after we pulled that. He'll alter you again." The fox said. Fiona, meanwhile stared at the floor, shivering, tears rolling down her cheeks. Her clothing had been splashed with blood, and she began to curl up, pulling her knees against her head. Alicia crouched and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Come on, Fi... Let's get you somewhere else..."  
>"A-Ally..."<br>"Ssshhhh... It'll be alright..."  
>"B-but Tails is going to-"<br>"Honey, I'm sure he'll be fine. Miles has had worse."  
>"Miles is a powerful mage... Tails isn't that strong."<br>"Yeah, but there's always his uncle, right?"  
>"Uncle?"<br>"Well, Miles' uncle Emrys taught him most of his knowledge of magic, so maybe his counterpart can help..."  
>"Come on, let's go back to the bedroom. Anima can rustle you up a new outfit."<br>"It will be done." The lynx smiled, floating off. As soon as she was gone, Miles turned back to Fiona.

"I didn't want to mention this around her, in cast Mephiles starts tampering with her... But I'm taking you home tonight. I'll put a mental block on your mind, so that Mephiles won't be able to get in so easily."  
>"O-okay."<p>

Alicia scooped Fiona up, and the trio headed for the stairs. Buns soon joined them, having shed her armour.

"Buns, I thought you needed that to live..." Fiona murmured.  
>"Miles found a cure for me." She smiled.<br>"You made a cure for NIDS?!"  
>"Yes. A vaccine too."<br>"Can we take some back with us?"  
>"By all means." Miles nodded. "Do you mind telling me what you know about that robot?"<p>

"His name is Emerl,the gizoid, meaning "Ultimate Weapon". He has the ability to scan and copy any attack he sees, and he's powered by a Chaos Emerald."  
>"Amazing... All my life, I've searched for the perfect melding of technology and Chaos... it it fell right into Tails' lap..."<br>"Yeah... in any case, he bonded to Tails, and they got on great. Helped that Sonic was missing at the time. He also fell in love with Nicole, but then Eggman drove him crazy and Tails had to kill him..."  
>"Looks like Tails didn't leav e him dead."<br>"Emerl used to try and help Tails get closer to me, and oh gods... Tails died fighting for me..."  
>"He's not dead yet."<p>

***

Mephiles brought Scourge back to the annex, 'smiling' once more. He set the hedgehog down on the table, and, with a wave of his hand, the torn flesh gradually repairing itself, his legs growing back slowly.

"Fuck that hurt! The hell was that thing anyway?"  
>"A Gizoid. He's scanned and copied a great many moves, which he can use as easily as the people who he saw. It's not a surprise that he beat you."<br>"Fuck it, whatever it was."  
>"Quite." He rolled his eyes. "In any case, Fiona has deigned to openly try to rejoin the Freedom Fighters."<br>"That might be a problem..."  
>"No, I don't think it will."<br>"Hm?"  
>"She dies tonight."<br>"Oh, awesome."  
>"How are the new limbs and hand?"<br>"They work great. This'll be easy!"  
>"Indeed." Mephiles nodded sagely. "If you were the one doing the killing."<br>"Say what?"  
>"If you stumble into that tower, you will be dead before you reach that room. I need somene who can get through to do it instead. You are, at this point, plan B."<br>"Damn... Well, what's the real plan?"  
>"Oh, I'm going to call in a favour." He replied, snapping his fingers. A second later, Anima appeared in the room. She yelped with fright, backing away and attempting to teleport again, but a crystalline shackle appeared around each limb, cutting off her jump. Mephile approached her, almost gliding across the floor, and gently lifted her head to meet his gaze. "Don't be so afraid, my dear... I told you before, I mean you no harm. I just need you to do one little task for me, and then I will leave you be..."<p>

***

In Mobotropolis, Nicole appeared outside the home of the Prower family, knocking on the door. A few minutes later, Rosemary, Tails' mother, opened the door.

"Nicole? What seems to be the problem?"  
>"It's... It's Tails." She said, hugging herself. Rosemary's face darkened, her eyes starting to widen.<br>"Nicole, what happened to him?!"  
>"Scourge! He fought Scourge, and he got stabbed for it!" She blurted, starting to sob. The older vixen gasped, and slumped against the wall, starting to weep herself. Amadeus appeared behind her, worry etched on his face.<br>"Dear, what is it?"  
>"Miles got stabbed fighting that brute, Scourge!"<br>"What!? Nicole, how did this happen?"  
>"We got two visitors from an alternate future, and they told us a load of information about Fiona Fox, primarily that she's not a bad person, just brainwashed by a being who has either named himself after Mephiles, or <em>is Mephiles.<em> She's also being targetted by Scourge after she left him to find help before, so we decided to help her. We succeeded, she seems to have snapped out of it, but Tails ended up fighting Scourge after Sonic got stabbed in the knee. He won, but Scourge stabbed him afterwards, while he was distracted. Tails... summoned... Emerl... to drive Scourge off, but when they fled, they took Fiona back with them. Our new allies say they can save him, but their plan is dangerous..."

"Oh dear gods..."  
>"You have to take us to the hospital!"<br>"I will. Hold on."

In a flash, Nicole teleported herself and the Prower parents to the hospital, where the others, were, waiting outside the operating theatre. Sonic and Sally were huddled up in one chair, Antoine and Bunnie in another. Rotor stood apprehensively nearby, tapping his fingers on a desk. True to their word, Silver and Blaze were already there. Floating beside the hedgehog, wreathed in cyan light, was a glowing, crimon stone, eyelike and malevolent, along with two golden bracelets.

"General, Councillor, these are Silver the Hedgehog and Blaze the Cat. They're time travellers." The lynx announced.

"It's an honour to meet you both." Silver smiled. "I just wish it was under happier circumstances."  
>"Yes... Where is the Gizoid?"<br>"He's in the O.R. His link to Tails is a strong one, and he's using his powers to keep him stable." Blaze replied. "We're going to need him for the bonding process too."  
>"Bonding process?"<br>"We're going to fuse this thing-" Silver gestured to the orb by his head. "- with Tails. It will repower the mad deity Hyperion, currently sealed inside Tails' mind, and in order to preserve his host, he will keep Tails' body healed and functional. These rings, at the same time, while prevent Hyperion from controlling him. The version of him in our timeline used a very similar system, and it never failed him."

"And are you sure it will work?"  
>"Yes."<br>"Then do it."

Silver nodded, turning to the others.

"Sonic, I need you for the process too, along with myself and Blaze. Nicole, you'll have to monitor the instruments, and attach the inhibitors. As a word of warning, there is a possibility that his heartrate will spike, and then flatline mid-change. That's perfectly routine, and it will actually just be the energy causing interference. That's your cue to put the rings on."  
>"Right."<br>"The rest of you...will probably want to wait here."  
>"Alright..."<p>

The quartet stepped into the operating room, where Tails was lying in the bed. His torso had been bandaged, the white strips of cloth stained a dark red. Various machines were hooked up to him, while Emerl sat nearby. His torso was open, a beam of energy shining from his core, into the fox's body.

"Okay, let's sort this..."  
>"What do we have to do?"<br>"Form a circle around him, put your hand over his chest, and prepare to follow Emerl's lead, on my signal."  
>"Right."<p>

Silver passed the rings over to Nicole, and took his position beside Blaze. Sonic and Emerl stood on the other side of the bed, the core hovering over their outstretched hands.

"Aaannnd... now."

Crimsons shocks of Chaos arced between the core and the quartet, as its glow brightened. The first of several shockwaves rippled out of it, as the sparking reached down to Tails' body. With another wave, things in the room began to rattle, and his back arched. An even more violent one exploded from the stone, which promptly evaporated into a scarlet cloud, pouring down into the fox. He lifted from the bed for a moment, the fourth wave emanating from Tails himself,as a blazing aura ignited around him. True to Silver's warning, the the ECG monitor began to bleep frantically, before dissolving into a shrill, monotone whine. On cue, Nicole clicked the two golden rings onto his wrists, then stepped back as they began to shine brilliantly. He squirmed, but finally, with yet another wave, the four Adepts were shunted back, and Tails relaxed, the glow dying.

He reached up to his torso, and ripped off the bandages, pulling the wires and tubes from his flesh, and, at long last, opened his eyes. He looked different now, his eyes seemed to burn with a strange aura, while his fur was messier and wilder. His claws were slightly longer and sharper, as were his teeth. The wounds were completely gone, without so much as a scar to remind onlookers of their presence.

"I'm... alive?" Immediately, Sonic, Nicole, and Emerl embraced him, and he returned the gesture, smiling. "Sonic... Are you crying?"  
>"I... I almost lost you, bro. I need a sec."<br>"Sure, go right ahead." He nodded. "Er, Niki? Can have a new shirt?"  
>"Oh, right away." She smiled. With a snap of her fingers, a swarm of nanites surrounding his torso, forming a blank, white tee. "Will this suffice."<br>"It's perfect, thank you."

A few moments later, they stepped outside, into the waiting area, and Tails was immediately set upon by both his parents, and the rest of the Freedom Fighters, practially dogpiling him.

"Guys! Can't breathe!" He wheezed. They released him and he sighed, grinning at them.

"How are you feeling?" Rosemary asked, clasping his shoulders. To her surprise, he pulled her back into a hug.  
>"I'm alright. It's a bit different, having him awake now, but he'll probably get bored and go to sleep again. Other than that, I'm good. I feel stronger than I ever have."<br>"I see."

"So, what actually happaned after I passed out?" He asked. "I remember calling Emerl, but that was about it."  
>"Sonic and Sally both attacked Scourge, but Sonic stumbled, due to the damaged knee. Scourge was too fast for Sally, and grabbed her by the neck, said he was going to kill her too." Blaze began. "Then Emerl showed up, and made quite the entrance, blasting Scourge's hand and reducing it to a bloody mess. He went on the attack, and beat the tar out of Scourge, even cut his legs off, but unfortunately, Mephiles stepped in, and warped all of them back to Moebius. He took Fiona too..."<p>

"Well... we're just going to have to go and get her back then, aren't we?" Tails said, folding his arms.  
>"I'm working on a plan already." Sally smiled. "I didn't get very far, due to obvious reasons, but we should be able to launch tomorrow morning. Until then, get a lot of rest and get used to your new body and power."<br>"Right."

Rosemary turned to face Emerl, who was currently embracing Nicole once more. He looked at the older woman apprehensively, but, to his surprise, she held out her hand.

"You saved my son." She said. "Thank you."  
>"You're welcome." He nodded, shaking her hand. "I know I'm not supposed to be active, but-"<br>"If he hadn't brought you back, he would have been killed today. That's justification enough for me."

***

Later that evening, Tails stood alone in a huge chamber, designed to allow the testing of new energy-based attacks and weapons. The walls, floor, and ceiling were lined with Morganite, offering shielding against any stray shots. He closed his eyes for a moment, focusing, then thrust his hand forward. A crimson blast, half as wide as he was tall, exploded from his palm, pounding against the opposite wall. Then he spread both of his arms out, sending two identical beams away from himself. With a snap of his fingers, a hail of Chaos Spears took form over his head, and lanced down, each exploding as it struck the ground.

"Okay, that's good... Now let's try something else..."

Energy coursed from the core,into his body, surging through him. He levitated, fur paling, eyes glowing brilliantly, as his inhibitors shone in the relative gloom. However, as his aura appeared, he felt a searing pain in his mind, as an all too familiar cackle of maniacal delight echoed through him. The rings flashed, dazzling him for a moment, and when his sight came back, he was on his knees, all hints at the attempted transformation gone.

"Okay... that's not going to work..."

***

Back on Moebius, in Alicia's bedroom, Fiona stood by the bed, now wearing a yellow Suppression Squad uniform. The squirrel herself was nearby, strapping a rather odd harness to herself. She walked over, and affixed and identical one to Fiona's torso, tightening the straps, while Buns climbed into her Omega armour.

"What's this?"  
>"Armour. Miles invented it. If you need to activate it, just hit the shield in your chest. It'll only respond to you."<br>"Oh, cool."  
>"Miles should be up soon, he's just dealing with some things in his lab... But before you go..."<p>

She suddenly embraced the vixen, and kissed her cheek, holding her close.

"Good luck, Fi."  
>"Th-thanks..." She blushed in spite of herself, not expecting the affectionate gesture. "And thanks for looking after me."<br>"You're welcome, sweetie."

Miles walked into the room, already weaing his own armour, the same suit he had been working on the night before. A heavy sword was strapped across his back, a pair of smaller blades, assembled to swing together like jaws, mounted on each forearm.

"We leave at midnight." He announced. "I've got some food on the way for us."  
>"What's the plan?"<br>"Sneak down to the Beryl cache and use it to warp over to Mobius."  
>"Simple, but effective... And the armour?"<br>"In case we're spotted."

A moment later, Anima appeared in the room, arms folded behind her back, eyes closed.

"Anima, what is it?" Alicia looked at her, only for a whole unit of drones to appear in the room, arms replaced with swords. The lynx spread her arms, her dress billowing up, revealing that her extremities were coated with crystal. She opened her eyes, revealing that her sclerae were now scarlet, her irises green.

"I have new orders... from my new creator." She said dully. "Fiona Fox must die."


	6. Chapter 6: Cavalry

Inked Puppetry: Shattered Minds (Chapter 6: Cavalry)

Anima lunged at Fiona, crystalline spikes extending from her fingertips. She yelped, diving out of the way, as Miles slapped a hand to his chestplate, deactivating his armour. The suit disassembled, pieces sliding away under each other, as the whole thing collapsed into his chestplate.

"Buns, eject now, before she-" He was cut off when one of the drones landed on Buns' armour, melting into it.  
>"Too late!" The rabbit cried. "She's got control, and she's sealed the hatch. Ah'm sorry, Miles, but Ah can't do anythin' to help y'all."<br>"It'll be alright." He sighed.

"Anima, snap out of it!" Alicia shouted, grabbing her daughter. The lynx barely acknowledged her, throwing her aside, as a wave of tendrils exploded out of the floor, spearing towards her target. Miles lashed out, cutting through the coils, jumping over to Alicia, before grabbing Fiona as well.

"Buns, we'll come back for you, you should be okay in there... Anima... I'm sorry."

In a flash, the three stood outside the castle, looking up at the ebon building, now crawling with drones. These ones were thinner, and their feline heads had been replaced with a single, glowing eye, the same twisted colours as Anima's.

"Now what do we do?"  
>"Can't get to the Beryls, she'll catch us. Can't jump to your world without the Beryls. Don't know how long we'll hold out, and we've got no backup..."<br>"So basically, I'm dead..." Fiona sighed.  
>"Unless we can contact your friends, I'm afraid so..."<br>"Wait, contact! Nicole linked her mind with mine when we were 'fighting'. Maybe I can connect to her!"  
>"It's worth a shot."<p>

"Uh, honey? Might want to make it quick!" Alicia called. The drones started to seethe towards them, Anima appeared behind them, as did the captive Suppression Squad. Mephiles and Scourge stood on a nearby building, looking down at them.  
>"Okay, cover me!" Fiona began attempting to reach Nicole, simply by closing her eyes and thinking continuously about Nicole, trying to lock onto her brain.<p>

Alicia grabbed her sword, and cut down the first drone, impalling the second and flipping her heavy steelies into the third, crushing its head. Miles followed suite, sniping several with bolts of Anarchy energy, then bissected one that got too close.

"Got anything?"  
>"I... I think so!"<br>"Then go for it!"

***

In Mobotropolis, Sally sat at her desk, pouring over new plans, Nicole floating nearby.

"How's it going?" Sonic asked, as he entered the room.  
>"Could be better, could be worse," Sally replied, scrawling something else down.<p>

"Guys... I think Fiona's trying to contact me..."  
>"What's she saying?"<br>"They're under attack. It's just her, Miles, and Alicia., and Mephiles is using an entire army of drones..."  
>"Then we don't have time to discuss it, we gotta go!"<br>"Sonic's right... Go and grab the others, we need to get moving!"  
>"Understood."<p>

Nicole vanished, and very shortly, the other Freedom Fighters started arriving.

"Sorry to wake you all, but Mephiles is making his move against Fiona. She managed to make telepathic contact with Nicole, but it's just her, Alicia, and Miles against everyone and everything else. Who's awake enough to come?"

"I am." Tails said.  
>"Same here." Emerl nodded.<br>"Silver and I are ready." Blaze spoke up.  
>"Ah can handle it."<br>"Oui, I can too."  
>"You know I'm going." Sonic nodded.<br>"And me." Nicole flashed back into the room.

"That should be enough, really..." Sally said. "Any objections?"  
>"No, I can hold the fort here." Rotor said, yawning.<br>"And I'm exhausted..." Amy sighed.  
>"Alright then."<br>"Then we get to work."

The Freedom Fighters began to gear up, as Tails approached Sonic, carrying a large box.  
>"Here, for the battle." He smirked. Sonic opened the crate, exposing the glow of seven synthetic Emeralds. "Fake Emeralds? Solstice came early!"<br>"Heh, you're welcome."

On Moebius, another drone dissolved into spare parts, Fiona kicking another one into shrapnel.

"Did you get through to her?"  
>"I... I think so..."<br>"Then we just have to stall..."

Another construct exploded, followed by two of them being sliced in half by Alicia. Miles jumped over her, and cut down a third, lifting his hand to blast yet more of them with a hail of Anarchy Spears. The blade in his hand lit up, and he tuned on his heel, bodily swinging the sword at the front row were slashed apart, the arc of the weapon shooting out as a blazing, crescent-shaped wave, cutting all that it touched in twain. He jumped back as more of the drones dove towards them. Staring up at them, Fiona thrust her hands forward, an energy beam the same size as her head speared out form each of them, burning through the robots in seconds.

"Keep forgetting I can do that now."  
>"You'll get used to it." Alicia replied, stabbing one of the machines.<br>"Well, if we live long enough."  
>"Don't worry, we will."<br>"You're confident..." Another drone collapsed, a smoking hole in its torso.  
>"Hey, we've got the best kind of backup." A silvery head crashed down, sparking.<br>"Without Tails, though..." Multiple small beams stabbed into the nearest robot.  
>"Hey, we don't know that yet." Her whip snapped around one of the drone's forearms, pulling it closer before stabbing it through the head.<br>"I'm a medic, Ally! I know what's lethal and what isn't... and he couldn't have survived that..."  
>"Just wait and see, Fi. He'll be fine." Both turned and shattered a drone that had been charging the other.<p>

"You two amaze me." Miles half-smirked, before unleashing yet another crescent blade.  
>"Question: Why isn't Scourge doing this?"<br>"Probably saving his energy. After the beating he took from Tails, he's probably wary about facing me in combat, especially since I wouldn't show him any mercy."  
>"So he wants to tire us out, and then kill us?"<br>"Essentially..."  
>"Well, I don't like to be a drag... but I'm bushed."<br>"Keep it together, Fi." Alicia called, impaling another drone.

"Well, I have good news."  
>"What is it?"<br>"I'm detecting Warp Energy."

A portal split open, a couple of hundred metres away, spinning violently, as Sonic, Sally, and Antoine stepped out. Immediately, the hedgehog started battering his way towards them, the two normals drawing their blades and cutting into the drone army at the same time. Another portal opened on the opposite side, Bunnie, Nicole, and Emerl flying out of it and opening fire on the forces too, soaring overhead and landing beside the first trio.

"You guys heard me, thank Solaris..." Fiona sighed, as Sonic and co. reached them as well. "But... Tails?"

As if on cue, the portals closed, and the drone army were struck by a scarlet energy beam, evaporating a good chunk of them, as Tails lowered himself to the ground, grinning at them. His eyes and aura blazed crimson, before fading to their natural state.

To his surprise, Fiona pounced on him, enveloping him in a bear hug, something the others were starting to find rather amusing, if only for the incredibly awkward look on Tails' face.

"Told you he'd make it, Fi!"  
>"I thought you were dead..." She said, unaware of his blush or his rising temperature, her own body being warmer already from all thefighting. "How did you survive."<br>"Uh... that's not something to discuss now. We've got drones to destroy."  
>"Oh, yeah, right..." She released him, only to be pulled into a more gentle embrace for a moment.<br>"You're going to be okay. I promise you that, no matter what, I- er, _we_ will protect you."

She flushed, staring at him, slowly leaning closer, until...

"Guys, either help us with these fake-fake Nicoles, or make out already!" Emerl shouted, standing in a pile of dead nanites. Both foxes stepped back from each other, cheeks glowing scarlet, and stared at him.

"Uh, missed you too, Emerl." Fiona rubbed the back of her head, before blasting another drone.  
>"Ooh, new skill, thank you!"<br>"Welcome."

"Have you any sort of plan?" Miles asked Sally.  
>"We can cut Mephiles' forces off if we can free Anima. Nicole will handle that for us, while we stand our ground."<br>"Why not just warp home?"  
>"The devices are recharging, and they're only strong enough to take four at a time."<br>"Right."  
>"I think Sonic's going for Scourge too." She pressed her fingers against the hilt of her blade. A thin blue beam projected between the two sword-tips. Her fingers curled around the wire, and she pulled it back, the twin blades pulling back, a gleaming cyan arrow forming within the newly-formed bow. She released it, and the arrow lanced out, stabbing through<br>"I see."

Blaze snapped her fingers, a streak of fire ripping out from her, forming an enormous inferno, melting countless drones, as Silver began hurling more of them into the fire. Bunnie and Emerl reconstituted their arms into cannons, and opened fire on the advancing army, as Antoine cut more of them down, each with a single swing of his blade.

"Sally, if Sonic can clear a path, I can attack Anima and free her. However, I'll need a distraction to keep Mephiles off my back."  
>"Alright then... change of plan. Emerl, Silver, Blaze, can you go and get Mephiles' attention?"<br>"We can indeed."  
>"I'll go with you." Miles said, cleaving another unit in two. "I said that I would kill him if he did anything to Anima, andI intend to stick to that. Or at least help."<br>"If you could wait around until I bring Anima back, you can help free her." Nicole said. "Tails, Silver, you might be able to help with that."  
>"Alright."<br>"Very well..." Sally nodded. "Just wait one more moment..."

Another squad of drones flashed into existence around them, aiming at Fiona, and by extent Tails. She kicked the nearest one's head in, as Tails cut several down with his namesakes. More drones began to appear, swarming the Frreedom Fighters, swarming to overwhelm them with sheer force of numbers. The two foxes were separated from the others, surrounded, but still slaying the gynoids in droves.

"You've... gotten really good at this..."  
>"Thanks." He smiled. "What's with the Squad uniform?"<br>"Well, my old clothes have blood on them, and Alicia provided the replacements. You know how she is..."  
>"Getting possessive again?"<br>"I think she likes me. I'm not really sure how I feel about that."  
>"Oh?"<br>"Well, on one hand, it's nice that she cares this much about me. On the other, she's not my type."  
>"What, being a woman and all?"<br>"More the "Takes Scourge victims and treats them as her own, then fucks them" part. Even if gender did matter to me, her being seductive with me would be less disturbing than that."  
>"Wait, you're-?"<br>"Bisexual, yes. Problem?"  
>"No, not at all."<br>"Don't get any ideas, though..."  
>"I won't."<br>"Liar."  
>"Am not!"<br>"Heh, I know, I'm just messing with you."

"So, where did you get the powers?"  
>"Mephiles gave them to me... I'm getting a little worried, though... He's trying to kill me, yet he's letting me keep them?"<br>"Maybe they don't work on him?"  
>"They work fine on his fake Anima."<br>"They're pretty weak too..."  
>"We think they're just tyring to tire us out."<br>"Well, there's your answer, then."  
>"These powers don't seem to be draining me at all..."<br>"Weird."  
>"I know."<p>

With the wave broken, Sally turned back towards the castle.

"Alright... Sonic! Nicole! Go and get started."

Sonic nodded, absorbing the synthetic Emeralds, blasting off into the horde, Nicole directly behind him. Drones were scattered, smashed, broken and launched, ripped apart by the tailwind. He reached the base of the building that Mephiles' entourage stood at the top of, and surged up the wall. Reaching the top, he delivered a vicious uppercut to his counterpart's jaw. He stumbled back, as Sonic's momentum corried him into the air. At the zenith of his arc, the energy of the Emeralds exploded through him, fur turning gold, eyes blazing red, wreathed in a fiery aura.

"Now, Nikki!" He yelled. Nicole appeared on the roof, and grabbed Anima, before vanishing again, taking both lynxes away.

"Impressive..." Mephiles mused. He snapped his fingers, and suddently, Sonic was struck from behind, knocking him off balance. He tumbled through the air, regaining his orientation with a quick spin. Looking up, he saw his attacker, none other than Scourge himself, in a new form.

His fur looked to be coated in a black, tar-like plasma. His skin was white, more like marble than actual pale skin. His jacket was gone, torn to shreds by the purple crystalline spikes growing from his shoulders and back. More crystals jutted from his quills, and encased his forearms and lower legs, his feet now resembling two-clawed talons, his fingernails now forming short, razor-edged knives. His eyes now had the same red sclerae as Anima herself, though his irises were now purple. He grinned, exposing needle-like teeth.

"Now... this is a Super form!" He cackled, diving towards Sonic.

***

On the other side of the battlefield, Nicole reappeared, holding Anima tightly, even as she struggled and pulled up more drones to try and stop her.

"Alright you three, into position!"  
>"Right."<p>

Tails and Miles stood either side of her, while Silver stood behind, leaving Nicole in front as the others cut down the drones. Eyes glowing, Nicole gripped her twin's head, channeling her energies into her mind. Miles triggered his magic, while Silver destabilized her, and Tails called upon Hyperion's psionic powers. She screamed, twisting and turning, trying to break free, then paused for a moment, and collapsed into Miles' grip.

"Did it work?" Alicia asked.  
>"D-Dad?" The lynx groaned softly, her eyes opening again. Miles held her tightly, as Alicia ran over and joined in the embrace. "What happened? The last thing I remember is... Mephiles... He kidnapped me..."<br>"And enslaved you. Your drones are causing us a few issues."  
>"Oh, hang on..."<p>

With a snap of her fingers, the drones stopped, and flew into each other, melting into a large puddle of nanites, which promptly spat out Buns, Boomer, and Patch, the other Moebians crashing to the ground beside them.

"Someone mind telling me what's going on?" The walrus demanded, picking himself up slowly. "I was in bed, and this thing grabbed me."  
>"Mephiles took control over Anima, and used her to try and capture us and kill Fiona. Fortunately, thanks to Nicole, she is free, and we were able to place a mental block on her, which should protect her."<br>"Oh, right..."  
>"So the drones are done?" Fiona mused. "What's next?"<br>"Well, I suppose we just try and find a way to help Sonic and fight Mephiles." Sally shrugged. The mire of nanites rippled, the drones slowly reforming, now back to their natural, greyscale-Anima appearance.

Above them, Mephiles watched, 'smirking' to himself, and stepped off the roof, floating over the battlefield. He raised his hands, and began to slowly applaud, closing his eyes as he absorbed their confusion and rapidly encroaching panic, savouring the taste.

"Well done, Freedom Fighters, Emperor." He clasped his hands for a moment, before spreading them wide. "However, if you think I am going to let my favourite puppet go so easily... You are sadly mistaken."

"Not even trying to hide that you brainwashed her, then?" Emerl asked.  
>"No... You are already aware, you would see it coming almost immediately, and you are able to release her and block me... at least temporarily. What satisfaction is there to gain from it if everyone sees it coming? Besides, her fears, her nightmares, her broken dreams... have lost their taste. I have nothing to gain from her now, and since I have no more use for her, she might as well die before she goes beyond a bland meal and actually becomes an... annoyance."<br>"If you think we're going to let you kill her just because you're bored of her, you've got another thing coming!" Tails growled, energy arcing over his body.

Mephiles raised his eyebrow, then smiled. All of the shadows in the area rippled, tugging away from the objects that cast them, forming a black whirlpool of gaseous tar. Out of it, a new, twisted figure emerged. It was hunched over, scrawny, its head little more than two narrow, jade eyes and a pair of jaws, filled with the same needle-teeth as Scourge's new form. Its spine bore a row of long, crystalline spines, and more of the same grew on its forearms and shoulders. Its arms ended in razor-edged talons, its whip-like tail in a knife-like barb. More of the same creature began to form from the mire, followed by similar ones with barbed wings instead of arms, and long, semi-liquid serpents, lacking any form of head, save for a trio of hinged jaws. The monstrous army screeched, a cacophony of differing wails and screams, charging towards the comparitively small drone army.

"I don't hear her saying that, _Avatar of Hyperion."_


End file.
